DeLeo ups T ante, pledges long-term fix

Speaker says the MBTA system is in crisis

SAYING THE MBTA is “in crisis,” House Speaker Robert DeLeo said the House is willing to work with Gov. Charlie Baker on a short-term fix but remains focused on a long-term plan and the revenue to make it a reality. The Winthrop Democrat, who often sees eye to eye with Baker on financial issues, issued

Ben Forman and Dr. Tracy Corley offer testimony to the Joint Committee on Revenue

On Regional Ballot Initiatives for Transportation

The Honorable Adam G. Hinds, Senate Chair The Honorable Mark J. Cusack, House Chair Members, Joint Committee on Revenue State House, Rooms 109-E and 34 Boston, MA 02133   Dear Chair Hinds, Chair Cusack, and Members of the Committee: Thank you for this opportunity to provide written testimony in support of An Act Relative to

TransitMatters pushes ‘regional rail’

Would transform commuter rail into subway-like system

TRANSITMATTERS, a nonprofit known for delving into the nitty gritty of very specific transportation issues, went in a different direction on Tuesday, releasing a sweeping report calling for a multi-billion-dollar overhaul of the state’s commuter rail system over the course of a decade or more. Dubbed regional rail, the ambitious proposal calls for transforming a rail network

T notes: Bus lanes do save time

Big changes may be coming on the Green Line

MBTA OFFICIALS ON MONDAY said initial results from two experiments in Boston and Somerville showed dedicated bus lanes could dramatically cut route times. Jeffrey Gonneville, the T’s deputy general manager, said a one-day test on December 12 of a dedicated bus lane on Washington Street between Roslindale Square and the Forest Hills T station showed travel

Advocates push T to restore late-night service

Supporters say there’s demand and need for 'transportation equity'

MBTA OFFICIALS CONTINUED to take a slow approach to rebooting late-night bus service over concerns about cost despite a detailed plan from advocates and pleas from state and local officials that such a service is a matter of equity for low-income earners rather than a convenience for millennial barhoppers. State Rep. Adrian Madaro of East

The Gateway Cities Journal

Finding "leadership" on transportation to sustain economic growth

“Raising MBTA fares is not leadership” read the provocative title of an op-ed by Boston City Council President Michelle Wu and Newton Mayor Setti Warren published in The Boston Globe this week. Wu and Warren make some great points about the importance of the T and the negative impacts that raising fares would have, both on

T oversight chief favors fare hike

Light turnout so far at public hearings

THE CHAIRMAN OF THE MBTA’S OVERSIGHT BOARD said on Wednesday that he believes the underlying arguments for a fare increase remain valid. He made his comment after hearing a top agency official say the two fare hike proposals the T is considering are attracting a light turnout so far at public hearings. Brian Shortsleeve, the

The Topline

CNN Democratic Debate Reaction: Don’t believe anything you read… yet

It’s the day after the first Democratic debate, and some news outlets are out with “polls” declaring the winner. Don’t believe them. Not the Drudge website poll which has Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders in first followed by Jim Webb. Nor the Boston Herald’s web poll, which has Sanders first and former Secretary of State Hillary

It’s never easy with the T

Sometimes it’s worthwhile to pull the curtain back on the struggles reporters go through in trying to get information one would normally assume would and should be public. Mike Beaudet over at Fox Undercover WFXT-TV (Channel 25) has a post on his blog about a testy correspondence he had with MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo. The

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